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December 23rd, 2012 - Trinity River, McInnish Park, Carrollton, TX

Christmas Break Paddle

I set up a meetup to paddle on the Trinity River tomorrow afternoon just to take a break from the Christmas rush. Two other people are joining me so far.

The weather will be in the low sixties and overcast. There are still a few leaves falling from the trees and it should be a beautiful paddle.

I'll try to have some pics.

We're not sure if these guys met the navigation lights requirement or not!

Christmas Paddle on Lake Grapevine Today!

A bunch of us are going to meet at Lake Grapevine at dusk today and paddle around the edge of the lake to see the Christmas lights on the homes and shops around the lake.

As we are required to have some form of lighting for navigational safety after sundown, I opted to use Christmas lights. A quick trip to the hobby shop and I found everything I need at marked down prices. This close to Christmas, decorations are half off! I will post pics of my yak and how I decorated it for this little evening excursion.

It rained most of the weekend but it let up at noon today and I went paddling! I drove to Grapevine lake and caught the tail end of the rains with all its clouds and wind. The waves were fantastic! 

It took a while to get across the lake as I was going against the wind and waves but after a quick snack of granola bars, carrot sticks and water, I was back in the water and it took only a fraction of the time to return to my launch point since the wind was at my back. It was also calmer on the way back. The stormy weather continued to subside and it was not nearly the roller coaster ride on the way back.

It felt good to get out on the water. I wish I had taken pictures of the waves but my phone was not charging properly this morning so I hadn't taken it with me on the kayak. I hadn't been in waves large enough to crest like that in a while. So...much...fun!!

I was a bit concerned when I first set out because I pass a boat ramp a few hundred feet beyond where I set in at my launch point and the boat ramp actually had barricades set up to keep people from unloading their boats. I was half-way thinking a park ranger was going to show up on a jet ski and make me go back to shore. After a few more minutes of not seeing any other boat traffic, I noticed a couple sail boats and a motor boat on the other side of the lake. This made me feel a little better...at least it gave me some assurance the lake had not been completely closed.

Anyway, it turned out to be a fantastic little excursion and some good exercise. The cooler air is heading in for the fall season. I need to get some farmer johns or something so I can paddle in the colder months as well.

We got a bit of rain this weekend and I'm still thinking of going out paddling today. Its not much of a rain, really...more of a mist, ya know? I just really want to get on the water.

I was talking to a guy at work about kayaking and he expressed an interest in getting his family out to do some camping and perhaps do some paddling. I suggested a large canoe for him and his family and we talked about various area to camp. I loaned him a magazine with lots of good starter info and a few websites where he can go and reserve camp sites in the local area.

I hope he and his family eventually plan a trip and have a great time. Who knows...if he really gets into it, I may even have a kayaking buddy I can go with to scout out new launches and maybe even put in a tandem entry for next year's Trinity River Challenge! Its always a good thing to get new people interested in paddling. Its good for the sport and a great way to make friends.